Do we match up well against Orlando?

[kevin_405]

Agree with Jajwanda and Random our only hope is to attack inside and get their forwards in foul trouble. Jameer would have been a much tougher cover than Rafer so we are lucky there and yes Mbega will get some chances in this series as i like him matching up against Howard.

Kobe needs to stay attached to his man instead of freelancing because who ever he pick will be a good 3 pt shooter.

Offensively Kobe will have a lot better time because they have no Artest or battier quality physical defenders.. Did playing against the 2 help Kobe or what.. he was killing the Nuggets after that series like a dicer and i think Orlando will have to be worried too..

Well Bynum will be a MIA in this series.. he lacks basic foot movement on defense.. so there is no way he can even stay in front of Howard.. Mbenga is a better bet than Bynum...

[Slava]

We have reached our offensive peak in a way and if the coaching staff can come up with a good defensive scheme to neutralize them, we'll be in very good shape. A lot depends on Bynum in this series and he's our X-Factor to me. If he can single cover Dwight and do a good job at it, I don't see a reason for us to lose a single game.

[Jajwanda]

If Bynum is able to single cover Dwight for the majority of the game I expect a massive blowout. It would throw their offense completely out of synch.

I'm curious in the Odom vs. Rashard match up who wins? I know Rashard can drain it like crazy but Odom is a true PF these days and when he's angry is a badass. Can he post up Lewis effectively or run past him to get Dwight in foul trouble? Eliminating Superman is the key and nothing else. Get that man in foul trouble. Come at him with Farmar, Shanwow, Ariza, Odom, Gasol, Bynum. The Magic had one guy who did that. Yes he's LeBron but even then I mean honestly, the Magic are terrible without Dwight (against us, not Philly). Neither Turkoglu nor Lewis nor Alston nor Pietrus (Kobe can D up Lee without a problem) can penetrate that well to give us trouble.

Also it's not like the Magic play overly physical either in general. Alston at his position is probably the nastiest of the bunch but it's Anthony Johnson we intend to attack anyway with the dynamic duo off the bench at PG. Besides I've noticed something about Alston. When you're not professional with him, he's angry and he can hurt you. When you're professional like Andre Miller or Derrick Fisher, he's just not the same.

[Verbal]

viewtopic.php?f=19&t=909312&start=0

Here's a sample:

The home loss against Orlando is the only one that disturbs me.

All other losses can be forgot about because they don't matter anymore.

Yeah up 15 and then we let Nelson dissect us to shreds.

There's no need to worry about Nelson this year - at least as an active opposing PG.

But next year? Yeah, that could be a problem.


I have a saying that someone like yourself would agree w/, "Champions win on the road."


We got this man.

Like I said when we took on the Nuggets, "it's ours to lose."

If we fail, it wouldn't be for a lack of talent rather than lack of proper execution.


With that said, the Lakers have no excuse for this series to go past 6 games.

But above all else, they should win this series; w/ or w/o help from Lamar "The Candyman" Odom. (I say that b/c he's bruised and a lil battered)

[Slava]

I don't expect Rashard lewis or Turkoglu to have a good series. Turk will have to contend with Kobe for stretches if they don't want to sacrifice Courtney Lee on him and Lewis will have to defend either Odom or Gasol for most of the game, which is a recipe for disaster. Moreover if Lebron alone could get D12 in foul trouble imagine the calls Kobe, Ariza, LO & Farmar could get when they drive to the paint.

[Patterns]

Nelson was the difference maker.

Turk and Lewis will not be as effective.

[TruSkool]

theres only one thing that can beat the lakers.

THE 3 POINTER

contain it, and we win the series. dwight will get his daily double double no matter how much the lakers try to stop it.

[Sofa King]

Phil should have the perimeter players watch the two Lakers lost against the Magic and also the tapes on the Cavs-Magic series.

Fisher needs to realize he's past his prime and let the younger guys take over.

[kevin_405]

Dwight had trouble against size the whole season.. Yao troubled him the most and them Perkins and Big Baby were also keeping him quiet.. Gasol had good games against Orlando..

So it is safe to say we can control Dwight in the paint.. but he will still get his 20-10 numbers..

We lost both the games to orlando in the regular season because Fish-Farmar combo could not handle Nelson a smaller and quicker PG, our Achilles heel all season. So Raefer is no Jameer which is good , plus the addition of Shanon in the rotation has given us great depth at the guard spot..

Actually in both games Nelson went ballistic in the 4Q and was unstoppable.. so with nelson out this not going to happen.

How we control the other 3 is the key to the game..

theres only one thing that can beat the lakers.

THE 3 POINTER

contain it, and we win the series. dwight will get his daily double double no matter how much the lakers try to stop it.

[OrlandO]

Nelson may return. They're currently testing him out. He'll be rusty, but i'm sure the lakers backcourt would rather face old man Anthony Johnson than a fresh Nelson. Alston w/ Nelson as a backup, should be interesting to see how that plays out from both sides.

Lakers fans, in terms of who your team would benefit from, would you guys prefer a rusty Nelson backing up alston or a fatigued Anthony Johnson?

[Sedale Threatt]

Nelson is a great player, but we've got bigger concerns than somebody coming off two or three months on the sidline. If he can come in and give the Magic a consistent and noticable lift in light of his circumstances, then it probably won't have been our series.

[BBallFan72]

I am an innocent bystander in these finals. My team never made the playoffs. I am a basketball fan first and foremost. I watch a ton of basketball with league pass so I think I can fairly give you an opinion on both teams.

First Lakers: The Lakers have games where they win ugly and win pretty, but as a fan watching them, I have never been able to get a grip on how they consistently can win in the playoffs. That may be good or bad. I think it is harder to gameplan against then because you never know if their two X factors in Bynum and Odom will actually show up. Against the magic I think they have to go small from the beginning. I would not ever give Bynum the starting spot. I would put the pressure on Odom to perform. I think Odom is the true X factor this series for the Lakers. If he does not play to his potential it could be a long rough series for the Lakers. i would start a Lineup with Odom in place of Bynum. As far as Matchups go I would actually rotate Gasol, Odom and Ariza on Howard and give him different looks as far as single and double coverage from these guys. The biggest problem I see for the Lakers is D. Fish. I do not think he has enough left in the tank to play hard at both ends of the floor. he has looked really old this year and could prove to be a detriment. If he plays good this series, it could be over quick. If I am the Lakers you let Howard get his and guard everyone else straight up. If you leave anyone open you let it be Alston. Everyone else is a lot more lethal from deep. I would also consider having D.Fish. coming off the bench playing against Anthony Johnson, because I think he can win that matchup. Whereas Farmar would have an easier time against Alston.

Second the Magic: I was surprised that Courtney Lee did not have a great series against the Cavs. I picked him as the X factor, but what I failed to realize that the Magic use him a lot for defense and there really was not a good defensive match up for Lee. The Magic usually put him on the best player for the other team. He guarded Kobe in the last game against LA and I expect the same thing again. If he steps up against Kobe and makes him work that could be in Orlando's favor. The Magic need Alston to step up big again as well as Pietrus for them to have a chance. I do not see them changing up their rotation. As far as Nelson coming back, I agree with the other poster, if he has any relevance in the finals for the Magic then it just was not the Lakers series and they will probably lose. Otherwise I cannot see how he can make any plausible impact being out of action for 4 months. I think whoever Gasol guards (Hedo or Lewis) they will abuse Gasol. Because Gasol will have to extend his defense to the 3 point line or get burned and I think both can take Pau off the dribble if he guards them too closely. It is the reason why I would put Odom and Ariza on Lewis and Hedo. Kobe on Lee and Gasol on Howard.

Should be an interesting series and I think we will not find out what can possibly happen in the series until after the first two games and adjustments are made on both sides.

[snaquille oatmeal]

Disneyland is the original, but Disneyworld is much bigger.

[BBallFan72]

The other thing I was going to add is the magic are playing much different basketball since Jameer has been hurt. So it remains to be seen how they will truly match up against the Lakers.